Netscape-Sun Alliance Loses Key Executive

Barry Ariko, a senior executive at America
Online’s Netscape unit Friday confirmed he has stepped down from his position in the Sun Microsystems-AOL alliance.

Ariko told CNET News.com he will remain at AOL (AOL)
for now, but will not continue to serve in the deputy general manager capacity.

Ariko would not comment on what his future role would be. Officials at
Netscape did not return phone calls late Friday.

Ariko left Oracle (ORCL)
to join Netscape in 1998 as executive vice president and chief operating
officer where he was a key factor in developing and maintaining the Sun(SUNW)
-AOL alliance.

Some think Ariko did not approve of the toned-down role he had at the new,
larger company, which was lower in profile than his positions at then-independent Netscape and Oracle Corp.